🌱 Kristof Off The Ballot + Bad Beef Recall + Kotek Steps Down

Happy Saturday, neighbors! Ah, the weekend. Time to kick back and enjoy some down time. But first, let me tell you about today.

First, today's weather:

Early rain gives way to clouds and maybe even a little sun. Haven't seen that for a while. Oh, and a high temp of 46.

Here are the top five stories in Portland today:

1. The Metro Council voted Thursday to funnel $36 million of state money toward the planning of a new Interstate Bridge over the Columbia River. Even as project managers characterized the vote as a formality, several councilors expressed hesitation about allowing the project to move forward without more information about the capacity of the proposed bridge or what they characterized as adequate attention to climate and equity issues. (OregonLive)
2. Friday, we got the news that Secretary of State Shemia Fagan's decision to bar Democratic candidate for governor Nicholas Kristof from the May primary ballot. But he's not backing down without a fight. “This is a decision grounded in politics, not in precedent,” Kristof said at an in-person press conference at the Friendly House in Northwest Portland. “The law is clearly on our side. We will challenge this decision and we will win.” (Willamette Week)
3. The Oregon Health Authority has published new directions for hospitals in the event they need to triage patients and decide who gets urgent, life-saving care in a crisis — and who may not — when there aren’t enough critical resources, such as intensive care beds, available. The new triage tool is based, in part, on updated standards published by Arizona, Massachusetts and Washington. It directs hospitals to rank patients by evaluating the likelihood of their short-term survival to hospital discharge. (OPB)
4. A Clackamas, Oregon company is recalling nearly 30,000 pounds of ground beef products because they may be contaminated with E. coli, the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Thursday. The raw, ground beef products, from Interstate Meat Distributors Inc., were produced Dec. 20, 2021, the USDA said. According to the USDA, the products have the establishment number “EST. 965” inside the USDA mark of inspection or printed next to the time stamp and use- or freeze-by date. (KATU)
5. It's time to move on for Tina Kotek. The speaker of the Oregon House for the past nine years announced Thursday that her last day in the state legislature will be Friday, January 21. From then on, it's time to focus on her race to succeed fellow Democrat Governor Kate Brown who is not seeking reelection. Kotek announced her candidacy in September. (Portland Patch)

Today in Portland:

• Join Hollywood Bizarre in NE Portland for a night of ritual dance, divination and lucid waking. Featuring Live Looping Invocations with Water Eye, Breakdance with Akash Gamana and Sound Healing with Chaz Pro of NW Sound Healing. There will also be DJs and dancing. Get your tickets online. 7:00 - 11:30 PM.
• Have you ever wanted to get out and do something, but you didn't want to do it alone? Well, have I got the Meet-Up for you. Welcome to the I Wanted To Do That...Just Not Alone! Come With Of Portland. This meetup is an extension of a successful meetup group in Miami. These meetups are focused on having fun, making new friends, and cultivating meaningful relationships. Today's event will be at Gigantic Brewing in SE Portland.6:00 - 8:00 PM.
• For a night of mellow indie rock music, go to the Kelly's Olympian in downtown Portland to see local bands Boy Caught Hawthorne and Charles & Ritchie. Tickets are available online or at the door (but you'll pay more at the door, so, you know...). Doors open at 8:00 PM.
• San Francisco band Get Dead will be playing at the Star Theater in downtown Portland. Get Dead rolls only five deep: King, guitarists Mike McGuire and Jeremy Korkki, bassist Tim Mehew, and drummer Scott Powell, but their album Dancing with the Curse sounds like an army. Also appearing will be special guests Ceschi and The MFA. Doors open at 8:00 PM.
• For a show that could not be more fabulous, check out The Queen's Variety at The Queen's Head in downtown Portland. A music hall review with live vocals and comedy. Starring Honey hart and featuring Dahlia Belle and Kat Buckley. Doors open at 7:00 PM.

From my notebook:

• Portland Trail Blazers: "35.5 PPG 57.9% from the field 53.8% from 3 7.0 APG @antsimons put the league on notice this week 🐜🐜" (Instagram)
• Portland Audubon: "These petite but fierce hunters often get mobbed by songbirds trying to “shoo” them away so it’s a giveaway that a Northern Pygmy Owl may be present if you see mobs of warblers, jays, blackbirds, or wrens loudly dive bombing a tree in re..." (Instagram)
• Portland Audubon: "From Oaks Bottom to Smith and Bybee, the Portland Metro area has so many incredible birding hotspots. Join us on February 22 in this online class and we'll introduce you to some of the best birding sites around Portland. We will show you..." (Facebook)
• Oregon Historical Society: "On the one-year anniversary of the U.S. Capitol insurrection and attempt to overturn the 2020 presidential election results, we’re reminded of the deliberate attempt to deny Abraham Lincoln the Electoral College votes of New York State i..." (Facebook)
• The presence of comic books and comic book creators is strong here in Bridge City and now that connection will be televised. The latest example of a comic book saga created by Portland-based talent making the leap to national screens is “Naomi,” a new series coming to The CW on Jan. 11. The show is based on the DC comics character created in 2019 by Portlanders and veteran comic writers, Brian Michael Bendis and David F. Walker, and illustrated by Jamal Campbell. The pilot introduces us to Naomi McDuffie (Kaci Walfall), a 16-year-old who lives with her parents in a Pacific Northwest town called Port Oswego, a name that will definitely sound familiar to locals. (The Oregonian)
• The American Red Cross blood donation supply is critically low in the Portland area and they're asking people to donate. Now they've started to make the deal a little sweeter with some tempting prizes. People who give blood or plasma during January will automatically be entered to win two tickets to Super Bowl LVI in Los Angeles, California. The package includes round-trip airfare, entry to the official NFL tailgate event and three-night hotel accommodations, plus a $500 gift card for other expenses. (Portland Patch)
• The Oregon Psilocybin Services is seeking the public’s input and participation in a community interest survey to understand who is interested in using psilocybin services. Those interested in taking the five to 10-minute survey will have a chance to participate beginning Jan. 7 at 10 a.m. through Feb. 6 at 11:59 p.m. Participants will remain anonymous. (KOIN)

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How's that for a Saturday? Enjoy your downtime Portland Peeps, but don't forget to meet me back here next week for more news of Portland.

— Dominic Anaya

About me: Doctor, educator and now a writer/artist, I'm just chillin' in Portland, OR with my wife, our ferrets, our chickens and our goats.